Apparatus and method for playing betting and bluffing card games with strategy board game mechanics

ABSTRACT

The present invention combines the elements of strategy board games and round based betting and bluffing card games into a unified structure which yields turn based games that are easy and fun for humans to learn and play but hard for computers to master.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to an appliance and method for playing various versions of a game which combines both traditional strategy mechanics along with the hidden information and bluffing mechanics present in many traditional card games, such as Poker.

BACKGROUND OF TILE INVENTION

Strategy games such as Chess have been largely mastered by computers, computers having defeated the highest rated players since the late 1990s. Computers use heuristics based breadth and depth first search algorithms to defeat humans at these games, combined with heuristics programmed with the help of expert human players.

Card games such as Poker are largely statistical, and therefore are also highly vulnerable to attack by computer programs programmed to take advantage of a computer's accurate behavior when calculating statistics.

The present invention permits games to be played which are both enjoyable and easily understood by humans who play traditional strategy and card games.

The present invention allows games to be played which may be more difficult to program a computer to defeat humans at than traditional strategy and card games due to the difficulty of computers searching an indeterminate possibility space.

The present invention permits the typical hand-based flow of betting card games to be combined with the movement mechanics of traditional piece based strategy games.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF VARIOUS EMBODIMENTS OF THE METHOD OF PLAY

The present invention allows for a multi-round hand based game-play where players alternate playing abetting round followed by a strategy board game using the cards drawn.

The small number of squares of the present invention's game board can result in shorter combat round sessions which permits the play of numerous hands during a game session.

Each player initially selects a color from a fixed set of colors, and is supplied with a card deck of their given color, from which they will form their hand and place cards of their color onto the board.

In some versions of game, a specially marked crown square belongs to each player which must be defended from occupation by enemy cards of rank king.

In some versions of the game, the players begin the game by selecting a single king from their deck and place it on the crown square.

Each player draws a hand of a fixed number of cards, typically five.

In some versions of the game, on their turn, players may draw one or more cards from the deck up to a fixed limit or capped to a maximum number of cards in their hand.

In all game variants, when a player has check-mated the opposing player during the combat round, both players reveal their hands and determine the winner of the hand according to the highest hand formed by each player.

In some versions of the game, players may sacrifice a turn in order to raise the bet during the combat round, forcing their opponent to match the raised bet or fold, losing the hand.

In some versions of the game, players may sacrifice a card or piece in order to raise the bet during the combat round, forcing their opponent to match the raised bet or fold, losing the hand.

In some versions of the game, after a player raises the bet during the combat round, an opponent who matches the raised bet may either request to continue turn based strategy combat or immediately force both players to show their hands, ending the turn based combat with the showdown and comparison of players hand value.

In some versions of the game, the player's hand value is determined by finding the highest hand value among all the cards of their color both still in their hand and present on the board, according to the value of hands in traditional Poker.

In some versions of the game, players may bet chips directly on the board which may then used as pieces during the combat round.

in some versions of the game, pieces or chips placed on the board may be flipped over to indicate they have promoted to become a queen on the final row of the board.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF VARIOUS EMBODIMENTS OF THE APPLIANCE

The game appliance consists of a game board for strategic movement, two or more decks of cards of different colors, and any number of betting chips.

In some versions of the game appliance, the game board contains twenty squares lid out in a four by five grid.

In some versions of the game appliance, the decks of cards contain fifty-two cards.

In some versions of the game appliance, the cards marked two through nine are pawn cards, and the cards marked as ten, jack, queen, king, and ace represent the different chess pieces higher than pawns.

In some versions of the game appliance, the game board uses a splayed row, rotated rectangular boxes, or symbols on the row closest to the players to indicate cards may be placed there.

In some versions of the game appliance, the game board may contain piece icons inside betting circles on the rectangular boxes to indicate chips may be placed there.

In some embodiments of the game appliance, betting circles are present on or around the board which may be used to place bets.

In some embodiments of the game appliance, particular squares are marked with a symbol such as a crown in order to indicate where the players king should begin play.

In some versions of the game appliance, particular squares are marked with a symbol such as a crown in order to indicate what square must be defended from occupation by the enemy king.

In some versions of the game appliance, the front size of cards display reversible strategy pieces so that may be oriented in either direction.

In some versions of the game appliance, the alternate side of the chips may show a pawn icon on one side, and queen icon or crown icon on the other, to indicate that it may be promoted.

In some versions of the game appliance, the back side of the cards may show a queen or crown or star icon to indicate that a pawn card may be flipped over if it reaches the opponent's home row resulting in promotion.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Some embodiments of the present invention are illustrated as an example and are not limited by the figures of the accompanying drawing, in which like references may indicate similar elements and in which:

FIG. 1 depicts a 5×4 game board with splayed rows closest to each player, crown squares, blind and call betting circles, along with circles for placing bets on the board.

FIG. 2 depicts the front of white and black cards and representations of traditional strategy game pieces on the cards.

FIG. 3 show a view of the game in progress during the combat round.

FIG. 4 shows a view of the game following the conclusion of the combat round via checkmate; a showdown where players compare hands by comparing the highest possible hand of each player created from both the cards on the board and the cards in their hand of their color.

FIG. 5 shows a flowchart of gameplay.

CONCLUSION

Integrating the elements of strategy and round based betting/bluffing card games in the manner described produces a game which is hard for computers to perform at as accurately or compute the possibility space as thoroughly as either of the games separately.

Combining the elements of these game systems in the ways described produces a game which uses a wide variety of human talents combined in different and unique ways during each round depending on the shuffle of the decks. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A board game apparatus, comprising: a game board for strategic movement of cards placed on the oame board squares, any number of betting chips, and two or more decks of cards, each containing cards of different colors, the front face of each card showing a strategic piece for use on the board.
 2. A board game apparatus as in claim 1, wherein the back side of the cards or chips may show a queen or crown or star icon to indicate that a card or chip may be flipped over if it reaches the opponent's home row resulting on a promotion of that piece to become another type of piece.
 3. A board game apparatus as in claim 1, wherein the game board uses a splayed row, rotated rectangular boxes, or symbols on the row closest to the players to indicate cards may be played there.
 4. A board game apparatus as in claim 1, wherein betting circles are present on or around the board which may be used to place bets.
 5. A board game apparatus as in claim 1, wherein a particular square is marked with a symbol such as a crown to indicate where a player's king must begin play.
 6. A board game apparatus as in claim 1 wherein particular squares are marked with a symbol such as a crown to indicate what square must be defended from occupation by an enemy king.
 7. A board game apparatus which combines any or all of the elements of claims 1 through
 6. 8. A method of playing a multi-round hand based game where players alternate between playing a betting round following by a strategic board game using the cards drawn, compromising the steps of: Initially selecting a color from a fixed set of colors, and being supplied with a card deck of the given color, from which a player may form their hand and place cards of their color onto the board. Beginning a hand by drawing a hand of a set number of cards, typically five. Playing a betting round where players alternate turns placing betting chips on betting circles or into a pot, where players must match the opponents bet in order to enter the combat round, or may fold and forfeit the hand if they do not wish to bet. Playing a combat round where players alternate turns choosing one of a set of possible actions, including moving cards on the board as strategic pieces, playing cards from their hand onto the board, drawing cards from their deck, and capturing enemy cards on the board. Following a determination of a winner of the combat round, chips bet are distributed to the winner.
 9. A method of playing a game as in claim 8 wherein the player may use their turn in order to raise the bet during the combat round, forcing their opponent to match the raise bet or fold, losing the hand.
 10. A method of playing a game as in claim 9 wherein if a player uses their turn to raise the bet, an opponent who matches the raised bet may either request to continue the turn based strategy combat round, or immediately force the showdown to occur, revealing players hands and ending the turn based combat with the winner determined based on the comparison of player's hand values.
 11. A method of playing a game as in claim 8 wherein the player may bet chips directly on the board which may then be used as pieces during the combat round.
 12. A method of playing a game as in claim 8 where the chips placed directly on the board as bets may be flipped over when reaching the final row of the board to indicate they have promoted to become a queen or other piece.
 13. A method of playing a game as in claim 8 wherein before a hand begins, a specific card or card type such as a King must be removed from the deck and placed on a particular square that is marked for that purpose.
 14. A method of playing a game as in claim 8 where the winning hand is determined by the highest hand value combining cards of a player's color both in the player's hand and including cards on the board which have not been captured or mated.
 15. A method of playing a game as in claim 8 where the winner of the hand is determined by the mate or capture of a predetermined piece such as a King during the combat round.
 16. A method of playing a game as in claim 8 where the winner of the hand is determined by a showdown triggered when a predetermined piece of either player such as their King is mated or captured during the combat round, wherein the hands of both players are revealed to determine the winner of the hand according to the highest hand formed by each player.
 17. A method of playing a game as in claim 8 where the winner may be determined without hands being revealed or the showdown being triggered, in the event that a specific piece such as a King may be moved onto a special square marked with a symbol such as a crown.
 18. A method of playing a game as in claim 8 where a player may raise the bet during the combat round in which case their opponent must either match the increased bet in order to proceed to combat round, fold and forfeit the hand, or re-raise further.
 19. A method of playing a game which combines any or all of the elements of claims 8 through
 18. 